Beloved
by Avi W. Lovegood
Summary: Peter had many names. But his favorite was spoken in a time when he thought he had lost the thing most precious to him.


Peter Pevensie had many names. High King Peter the Magnificent, Emperor of the Lone Islands, Lord of Cair Paravel, and Knight of the Most Noble Order of the Lion. Then there were those far more intimate. But there was one that was his favorite above all the rest.

Beloved.

The one who called him this was more precious to him than anything else. The one who protected him, who had died for him. The Great Lion. Aslan. After Peter's initial encounter of Him, the Battle of Beruna and the following coronation, the High King would be visited in person by Aslan several times throughout his reign, and even after it, when he and his siblings had returned to England. Some in times of physical trouble, like when he and his brother Edmund had had trouble expelling the last of the Dark creatures employed by the White Witch. Mostly, however, Aslan came when Peter needed him most. In times of personal and spiritual trouble. One such example being the fifth evening after they had been sent back to the Professor's.

It had been hard on all of them to be sent back at the very height of their reign over Narnia and the Lone Islands. To go from a land of happiness, love, and adventure, to one of war, paleness, and fog was not a transition easily taken. However, he had tried to be brave. He put on a face of optimism, and bravery. He told all of his siblings to "chin up and carry on". During the day, he kept on his mask. Peter acted like he knew what to do. Peter acted as if this were just a small vacation, and not what felt like a banishment. Peter acted as if he was not as lost as the rest of them.

He cried only once. On that fifth night. He wasn't sure, even later, what triggered it. One moment, he was sitting on his bed writing a letter home to his mother, and the next, his eyes were closed and his cheeks wet.

Peter the Magnificent was frightened.

All week, he had looked for a sign. Something to tell him that Aslan was here, and watching over him just as he had back home (For he would forever think of Narnia as home now). He had searched for that same sense of warmth and strength that he felt whenever he so much as heard the Great Lion's name. He internally groped for a wisp of the spirit of Aslan he had so often felt in Narnia. And when he was unable to find any, he reacted as any child would to losing something they loved more than anything. He cried.

It wasn't anything large, or loud. His chest was not racked with sobs that shook his whole body, his hands did not shake. But there were tears coarsing down his face that seemed as if they would never stop, even when he squeezed his eyes shut. And then, Peter begged. He bent over until his forehead touched propped up knees that were wrapped around by his arms. "Please." he breathed, his voice thick with his crying, "Please don't abandon us. Not now. Please." He chanted that same word in a hoarse whisper as if it were his saving grace, as if it were the thing that would awaken Aslan inside him and whisk him and his brother and sisters back to thier kingdom.

Eventually his desperate prayers seized. He leaned back and fell asleep, the dried tear tracks still discernible on his pale face. As he slept, a warm aura fell over the room. Despite the darkness that the night brought, it was a kind shadow, similar to the way darkness looks after a satisfying day in the summertime. It was peace. And this peace entered Peter's expression.

This peace entered his dreams.

...

_He was on a cliff. Not a large one, just a small drop off over the beach. Ah, he remembered this place. This was where he came to think. It had a wonderful view of the ocean, and if you closed your eyes, you could almost hear the buzz of the faraway places that lay on the other side of the ocean. His realm may had been the North, but he still loved the sea. _

_And there, near the edge, was the one he had been praying to. The Lion stood there overlooking the ocean, his mane being brushed gently by the wind. Peter immediately fell to his knees and bowed his head. "You're here." he whispered, a sense of relief greater than any other filling him. But then, Aslan turned his head, and Peter saw that his expression was sad. And it made his heart drop. _

_"Rise, Son of Adam, and walk with me." Despite the anxiety Peter felt, he still felt comforted by that voice. The voice that spoke of courage, and love. The High King stood and followed Aslan down to the coastline, not speaking the entire way. He had learned by now that if Aslan wanted to speak, he would do so. And speak he did. _

_"Do you love me, Son of Adam?" The question startled Peter so much he almost stopped in his tracks. Did Aslan doubt him? After all this time, after all Peter had done in the Lion's name, did He really doubt Peter's loyalty?_

_"Yes." Peter breathed, "More than anything."_

_Aslan stopped finally, and Peter stopped with him. The Lion turned His head, and great golden eyes met Peter's blue ones. "Then why do you have no faith in me?" _

_The oldest Pevensie was aghast. He opened his mouth to speak, and found that he had no words. He could only stand there, gaping like a young centaur at his first tournament. But he could say nothing. How could Aslan say that? Had he not done exactly what he was supposed to? Had he not taken care of his family? Had he not made sure that they were all secure with the change from thier world to England? Had he not looked for signs? Had he not _begged _for them? Had he not-_

_Oh. _Oh.

_He hadn't had faith. 'Please don't abandon us.' By those words, he had lost faith that Aslan was beside him, the same faith he had made his rock in Narnia. Peter had automatically assumed that when not in Narnia, he was alone. But he was wrong. The only way asking for Aslan's presence could be considered losing faith was if Aslan was there all the time. _

_He had never left. Peter had been looking behind his shoulder for someone who was standing right in front of him. _

_Peter got down on one knee. "Aslan, I- Forgive me." And he squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for Aslan's rebuke, for Aslan to lecture him, for Aslan's anger at Peter's lack of trust. Instead, he felt warm breath on his forehead. "Oh, Peter." Peter looked up, and saw that Aslan's eyes were level with his. And he could not look away._

_"I never left you, Peter. I was with you always, and will continue to be with you always." Aslan declared. "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." _

_"But Aslan," Peter blurted out, "How will I know these plans? How can I find you in England?"_

_Aslan gave a small chuckle. "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from where I have banished you and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile."_

_"I love you, Peter. I will always love you. You, beloved, are mine. Look for me. I will be there. Perhaps in places you do not expect, but I will be there all the same."_

_The dream started to fade, and the former High King of Narnia gasped as his vision faded to darkness. "Aslan!"_

_A strong voice filled his ears before he slipped into a dreamless sleep. "I am with you. Beloved, I am with you always."_

Peter awoke with a smile on his face and a sense of security in his heart.

...

It was some time later, after the war had ended and the Pevensies had returned home, that Peter was sitting in church. The minister called the congregation to attention and asked them to turn in their bibles to Jeremiah 29.

When Peter saw the chapter, he froze. "What is it?" Edmund hissed to him. Peter merely shook his head, a smile growing on his face.

And he could have sworn that somewhere, he heard a lion's laugh.

**A/N: Hello! Goodness, it's been a while since anything new! This actually came to me quite a while ago, but I haven't had time until now to write it! **

**What Aslan says to Peter in the dream is indeed taken from Jeremiah 29:11-14. **

_**"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and fine me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the Lord, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the Lord, "and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile."**_

**I hope you enjoyed this little one shot! I am planning to write more in the Narnian universe, so keep on the look out! **

**Most sincerely, **

**Avi W. Lovegood**


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